Storm Michael expected to hit Florida as a hurricane midweek

A man pulls a boat as Tropical Storm Michael approaches in Cancun, Mexico, October 7, 2018. REUTERS/Israel Leal

(Reuters) - Tropical Storm Michael is on track to hit the Florida Panhandle midweek as a Category 2 hurricane packing 100 miles per hour (160 kmh) or stronger winds, the U.S. National Hurricane Center (NHC) said early Monday in an advisory.

The tropical storm is expected to swell into a Category 1 hurricane as soon as Monday night or early Tuesday as it rolls into the U.S. Gulf of Mexico, with winds of 70 mph, as of 5 a.m. eastern time, forecasters said, just shy of being named a hurricane.